“Due to budget cuts and lack of funding for workers we bring in to help staff the nature center, we are looking at the very real possibility of a reduced schedule for the off-season this year. We are looking at that now — and talking with the Friends of Hammonasset, who may be able to offer volunteers to help staff it — and will make a decision on the schedule in the next few weeks,” said Dennis Schain, spokesman for the state Department of Energy and Environmental Protection.

Ten years ago, the Friends of Hammonasset, a volunteer organization that works with the state and park management, sought to construct a new nature center in order to accommodate a larger audience and enhance a children’s science education through up-to-date technology.

Last year, officials broke ground on the project after the organization raised $450,000 to design, fabricate and install the building’s interior and its displays, and the state awarded the park $3.5 million to construct the exterior of the facility.

The new 4,000-square-foot nature facility — which features an exhibit space, an observation deck and hands-on learning experiences — officially opened for the year on May 26.

The center features four exhibits — “In the air,” “In the woods,” “In the water” and “At the beach” — that are meant to educate visitors about the wildlife found throughout the state, but also inspire children to be curious about their environment.

Not only does the center introduce visitors to animals and amphibians that inhabit the area, but the facility also runs on geothermal technology that heats and cools the building and uses photovoltaic solar panels to generate electricity,

But after state legislators sought to close a nearly $1 billion deficit, the DEEP announced in July that $1.8 million in reductions had been made to state park operations.

Dana Lindsley, media coordinator for Friends of Hammonasset, said the board has not yet received any official answer on whether the center will close during the off-season.

“We at Friends and the public have received very conflicting messages from the DEEP about when or if the nature will be closed. Some people in the department have said it will close on Sept. 30. Others have said no, we are going to have to limit the hours, we are not going to close, but it is going to be a lot less. Others have said there’s no way we are going to close this.”

In order to prevent the nature center from closing, Lindsley said the board is committed to working with the state in order to develop a strategy to keep the facility running on its current schedule of 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. Tuesday through Sunday. Workers, however, have been instructed to hold off on scheduling programs from Sept. 28 on due to the uncertainty of the center’s future, Lindsley said.

Last year, Lindsley said more than 60 schools and 60 scout groups participated in 650 programs offered by the Meigs Point Nature Center. Since opening its doors in May, Lindsley said there has been an increase in foot traffic, with more than 14,000 people utilizing the facility during the first two months.

“The place is intended for environmental education, particularly in terms of appreciation for the diversity of nature and even the area. This provides an opportunity for children to really come to appreciate the fragility and the beauty of the park and the environments that are in the park,” Lindsley said.

But if the nature center closes during the off season or reduces its current hours of operation, Lindsley said workers are concerned about the level of care the animals would receive.

“The animals need continual care. … Even if it closes part-time, what is going to happen to all of the animals? Especially if the animals haven’t been fed in days. The equipment needs to be monitored every single day, so it’s really hard to imagine how you could close several days a week. Somebody has to be there,” Lindsley said.

Currently, the center is staffed partly by volunteers. But in order to care for the animals and monitor the complex equipment, Lindsley said a worker must be trained. The center spends approximately $30,000 on seasonal staff, he said.

“It may be that we need to find extra money in some way, shape or form to provide to more seasonal workers. It’s been that case in the past, and the center has been open throughout the year,” Lindsley said. “It’s not that big or significant of an investment in terms of money or people to make that happen. Given the fact that there are some deadlines that are coming up, particularly programming scheduling we need to do after Sept. 28, we need to get this solved soon.”

And because the state has made a $3.5 million investment in the nature center, Schain said officials are hoping to find a way to keep the center operating so it can continue to educate children.

“The state and the Friends made a tremendous investment in building an extraordinary new nature center to promote environmental education, and even with limited funding, we want to work to find ways to keep it open and available to the public as many days as is possible,” he said. “It is unlikely that we would close the nature center in the off-season.”